Before I get to that, I have to add a lil’ girly infusion (thanks for bearing with me, guys) and an explanation for my “you deserved it” dinner — which I thoroughly enjoyed! I figure every woman/wife/mom/girlfriend (and yes, guy!) can appreciate the “busy” background in my photos. Such is our lot in life at times. (And I was hungry.)

It’s not every day I cook up a seafood fest for myself, but I felt the need… especially since The Man of Few Words (TMOFW) stance on Mother’s Day is/was/and always will be: “You’re not my mother!”

Yup… no card, no flowers, no dinner out. (Gotta love that man, xo.) That holiday and a few others continue to be an entirely on-my-own affair — and what better way to celebrate “my day” than with goodies that don’t often cross “our” table? By the way, I was nice and shared. (Except for the lobster and drawn butter…) Bwahahaha! ;)

First up was shrimp cocktail. It may surprise you to learn that I didn’t like shrimp until last year. (Gasp!) For some reason these succulent crustaceans didn’t appeal to me taste-wise, texture-wise, or otherwise until I made an umpteenth batch of Shrimp Scampi for my beloved (his favorite) and finally tried one. What do ya know? I liked ’em!

Better late than never.

Next up were the fabulouscrab cakes shared by my friend, Jeanne. (Forever in your and your son’s debt, my dear.) Your three-ingredient dipping sauce was to die for, too!

Not to be outdone by an abundance of butter and mayonnaise (did I mention I have naturally low cholesterol?) I had to make Easy Curry Hollandaise Sauce with Asparagus by my Chef pal, Larry Fournillier… soooooo tasty. (Thanks, Larry!)

Now… back to those random questions. Here’s the deal. If you want to participate, do. If you don’t, don’t! I totally understand time crunches! (I think I was supposed to make up some new questions for you, too, but I kinda liked these… and if I started tagging folks, this post would be ten times longer than it already is.)

You know who you are!

Leave your answers in my comment section or start a whole new trend on your blog. ;) Mostly, have fun!

1. What has been your favorite vacation to date? My initial answer was “every day TMOFW and I spent on the road together while we were trucking,” but let’s not mix business with pleasure. Final answer? Our trip to Niagra Falls. When we got married (almost 15 years ago), we were both ‘starting over’ if ya know what I mean, and we couldn’t afford a proper honeymoon.

On our 5th anniversary we made up for lost time and did a “Great Lakes Tour” — I’m talkin’ drive around, over, and past every one of the Great Lakes in a car — which was a welcome change of pace from our semi(s) — and it included the long-awaited stop at Niagra Falls on the Canadian and U.S. sides. Corny, hokey… and entirely memorable!

2. Do you prefer big city life, suburban life, or life in the country? See header photo.

4. How would you typically dress for a weekend night out? We don’t go out very often (see header photo…) but when we do, I tend to “fancy up.” (TMOFW not so much.) The pearls in my photos serve more than one purpose. :)

5. Do you like to wear accessories? If yes, what are your go-to accessories? I’m not much of an “accessories” person, but I do like scrunchies (in every color of the rainbow) to doll up my ever-present pony tail.

6. How do you typically fix your hair? (Blow dry and straighten/curl? Air dry? Wash and go?) See #5 above. The less time I spend on my hair, the more it leaves for other stuff.

7. What makeup do you wear on a daily basis? Do you have a preferred brand of cosmetics? I’m a “wash your face and get on with it” kinda gal, but I have a weakness for mascara and lipstick. (My eyelashes and lips tend to disappear without them.)

8. What is your preferred workout? (Gym? Outdoor running? Yoga? Group classes? None?) Stirring vigorously, chopping food like I mean it, and running back and forth between my kitchen, computer, and piano. (Walking also ranks right up there.)

9. Where is your favorite place to shop? Thrift stores and flea markets.

10. Do you enjoy entertaining guests in your home or would you prefer to be a guest and leave the hostessing to someone else? I love to entertain, but if anybody wants to invite me over, I’m game…

11. What quality do you really value in your significant other? His ineffable ability to be himself (even if it means cooking for myself on holidays now & then…) and his quiet encouragement for me to be “me.” Life doesn’t get much finer!

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19 thoughts on “Random Playfulness”

Loved reading all about you, as well as drooling over your self-made Mother’s Day feast. I’ve never made anything so fancy, for myself or anyone else! You talking about your honeymoon being not a real one made me smile because we stayed in town, took only one day off work, and went to the Exploration Place – a science museum. It wasn’t until our 5th anniversary that we were able to take the honeymoon that we wanted – a trip to Vegas. Definitely my favorite vacation to date! I loved it so much that I missed being there for like two or three years. I love that you were scrunchies – that is so cute! I didn’t know they existed any more but I wore them a lot in middle school and high school (90s child here). Very handy and easy on your hair! I don’t mess with my hair either – I just let it style itself as it air dries and I only do make up (eyeliner mascara) on Sundays. :D

Love it! Thanks for playing along. Some of the answers we readers already knew about you, but it’s nice getting to know you more. Your “Mother’s Day” meal looks so tasty, I can almost smell it from here. Happy Memorial Day weekend!

Random playfulness is what makes life…well, LIFE! You can live w/straight lines or you can have squiggles and convulsions of lines that screech and scream playfulness! I like the later! Hummm, favorite vacation…well, it’s the one we took on our honeymoon, which we’re re-tracing now…we’re the Indiana Jones kinda couple, so it’s all about adventure, and we’re back doing it again on this 20th anniversary…as for the other questions, I’ll beg a ‘pass’ to answer later…as you know, we’re having a delightfully playful time in Paris right at this moment as I hammer out my love to you!! xoxox

What a shame about Mother’s Day. My cousin came over to our Mother’s Day lunch absolutely seething because her husband gave her nothing, not even a card. He said, ‘But you’re not my mother’, and she launched into him with such venom I don’t think he’ll play that card ever again. Great use of your pearls! xx

Loved this post, Kim, and the humor in your responses. Many of mine would be the same, particularly the ones about hair, makeup and workouts. Can’t wait to try the crab cake recipe. That’s my beloved’s favorite (white-on-white)!

I adore you even more after reading this! I’m with you (and Sue Ann) on hair, makeup and workouts. Too many more meaningful things to do. I’ve got to make these crab cakes. I love the flower—and that you cook for yourself on holidays.

Tracey, a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do, including accepting life on whatever terms it presents itself. The single biggest lesson(s) I’ve learned thus far — the ones that exude joy and peace — are to let go of ‘expectations’ and be in charge of my own happiness! Anything else beyond that is gravy… or Hollandaise! :)

People probably think I am terrible. I posted on Facebook my ideal Mother’s Day would be for my husband and daughters to go to a movie and out to eat and leave me at home alone–LOL! You are my kind of lady–wash the face, don’t mess with the hair–Mine tends to frizz out, so it is under a baseball hat for me–and have time for more important things.

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Greetings! I'm Kim Bultman, and welcome to a little lunch. Today's menu may include writing, food & photography... or all three. Like Oklahoma's weather, things are subject to change. For more info on 'moi' please see my About page. In the meantime, make yourself at home. I'm glad you're here!